Method of forming label with label forming apparatus, and label forming apparatus

ABSTRACT

A method of forming a label with a label forming apparatus having a printing section for performing printing while feeding a processing tape, and a working section for performing physical working on the processing tape while feeding the processing tape. The apparatus is capable of selectively performing print processing for performing printing, work processing for performing physical working, and print-and-work processing for performing printing and working on the processing tape based on inputted information. The apparatus is also capable of continuous processing for forming a single continuous label in which a plurality of labels are formed in series. The method includes allowing the continuous processing in the print processing and the work processing, and prohibiting the continuous processing in the print-and-work processing.

The entire disclosure of Japanese Patent Application No. 2005-111423,filed Apr. 7, 2005, is expressly incorporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

The present invention relates to a method of forming a label with alabel forming apparatus which is capable of performing print processingand physical work processing on an identical processing sheet, and alsorelates to a label forming apparatus. The term “work processing” or“physical work processing” is used in this specification to mean“performing a physical act or acts, processing, or treatment on anobject to be subjected to the processing to produce some kind ofchange.”

2. Related Art

In print processing of character array including numerals, there isknown an apparatus for use in forming a plurality of labels which areattached with a plurality of serially numbered labels, by repeating theprinting work while incrementing the counting number by one. In such acase, considering the ease with which the labels can be stored until thelabels are used, the apparatus is configured such that a continuouslabel made up of a plurality of labels are connected to one another.JP-A-185695-1993 is an example of related art. Further, there is alsoknown one which is made up of a printing section for performingink-character printing on a processing tape and an embossing section forperforming Braille embossing and in which a label can formed in a mannerin which the ink characters and the Braille characters are disposed inparallel with each other so that the person having an ordinary eyesightcan also understand the meaning of the Braille characters.JP-A-301033/1999 is an example of related art.

From these two conventional art, it may be considered to configure alabel forming apparatus in which continuous labels can be formed byperforming print processing and emboss processing. In this case, if aprint-feed mechanism and an emboss-feed mechanism of the processing tapeare used in common with each other, when embossing device performsembossing operation, the processing tape is likely to get off from athermal head due to the embossing vibrations, thereby bringing about aproblem in that the printing quality of the ink characters becomes poor.To avoid such a problem, the feeding mechanism will have to be providedindependent of each other. In such a configuration, however, there willarise an error (feeding error) in the amount of tape feeding by theprint-feeding mechanism and the amount of tape feeding by theemboss-feeding mechanism. Therefore, in case a continuous label isformed by performing both printing and embossing (also referred to asprint-and-emboss processing), there will occur a problem of adisplacement in the tape feeding direction between the print-processedportion (ink-character array) and the emboss-processed portion(Braille-character array) in each of the labels, the deviation becomingconspicuous toward the rear end of the continuous label.

SUMMARY

It is an advantage of the invention to provide a method of forming alabel with a label forming apparatus without the possibility of forminga label in which the print-processed portion and the emboss-processedportion are displaced from each other as seen in the tape feedingdirection. It is also an advantage to provide a label forming apparatus.

According to one aspect of the invention, there is provided a method offorming a label with a label forming apparatus. The apparatus comprises:a printing section for performing printing while feeding a processingtape; a working section for performing physical working on theprocessing tape while feeding the processing tape, the apparatus beingcapable of selectively performing print processing for performingprinting, work processing for performing physical working, andprint-and-work processing for performing printing and working on theprocessing tape based on inputted information, and also being capable ofcontinuous processing for forming a single continuous label in which aplurality of labels are formed in series. The method comprises: allowingthe continuous processing in the print processing and the workprocessing; and prohibiting the continuous processing in theprint-and-work processing.

It is another advantage of the invention to provide a label formingapparatus (or an apparatus for forming a label). The apparatuscomprises: a printing section for performing printing while feeding aprocessing tape; a working section for performing physical working onthe processing tape while feeding the processing tape, the apparatusbeing capable of selectively performing print processing for performingprinting, work processing for performing physical working, andprint-and-work processing for performing printing and physical workingon the processing tape based on inputted information, and also beingcapable of continuous processing for forming a single continuous labelin which a plurality of labels are formed in series, the apparatusincluding: a processing selection device for selecting from among theprint processing, the work processing, and print-and-work processing; acontrol device for controlling the printing section and the workingsection, wherein the control device allows the continuous processingwhen the print processing and the work processing are selected, andprohibits the continuous processing when the print-and-work processingis selected.

According to the above configuration, in the print-and-work processing,both printing and working are performed on the processing tape. Ifcontinuous processing is performed, there will occur a displacementbetween the printed portion (i.e., the portion subjected to printprocessing) and the worked portion (i.e., the portion subjected to thework processing) due to the feeding error between the printing sectionand the working section. This displacement becomes especially remarkabletowards the rear end of the continuous label. Therefore, continuousprocessing is prohibited. As a result, there is no possibility offorming a plurality of labels in which displacement has occurred fromone another in the tape feeding direction. On the other hand, in theprint processing and the work processing, only one of the printing andthe working is performed on the processing tape. It follows that, evenif the continuous processing is performed, there is no possibility ofdisplacement between the printed portion and the worked portion in eachof the labels. Therefore, the continuous processing is allowed. As aresult, a plurality of labels (a continuous label) can be formed in aneasy operation and they can be easily and conveniently stored.

It is preferable that the above-referenced method of forming a labelwith a label forming apparatus further comprises individual processingof forming a plurality of labels in succession as individual labels inthe print-and-work processing based on prohibition of the continuousprocessing.

It is preferable that, in the above-referenced label forming apparatus,when the print-and-work processing is selected, the control deviceperforms individual processing of forming a plurality of labels insuccession as individual labels based on prohibition of the continuousprocessing.

According to the above configuration, in the print-and-work processing,individual processing is performed in place of the continuousprocessing. As a result, it is possible to form a plurality of labelswithout the occurrence of displacement between the printed portion andthe worked portion in each of the labels. Therefore, a plurality oflabels can be formed in an adequate manner whichever of theprint-and-work processing, and print-and-work processing may beselected.

In the above-referenced label forming apparatus, it is preferable thatthe processing tape is a tape wound into a roll. The printing sectionfurther includes a cutting device for cutting the processing tape,wherein, in the work processing and the print-and-work processing,physical working is performed by the working section on a piece of theprocessing tape formed by passing through the printing section, and thecontrol device controls the cutting device to perform cutting of theprocessing tape at a rear end of the continuous label in the continuousprocessing and to perform cutting of the processing tape at a rear endof each of the labels in the individual processing.

According to this configuration, in the work processing andprint-and-work processing, the cutting of the processing tape isperformed by the cutting device when the processing tape passes throughthe printing section, thereby obtaining the piece of the processing tapeto be subjected to the work processing at the working section. In thecontinuous processing, the rear end of the continuous label is cut bythe cutting device, thereby cutting off from the processing tape acontinuous label (tape piece) of an appropriate length. Similarly, inthe individual processing, the rear end of the respective labels can becut by the cutting device, thereby cutting off from the processing tapea plurality of labels (pieces of tape) of an adequate length.

In this case, it is preferable that the processing tape is made up of atape main body and a release tape. The printing section further includesa half cutter for cutting only the tape main body, and the controldevice controls the half cutter to perform half cutting in which aborder of the plurality of respectively adjoining labels is half-cut inthe continuous processing and the half cutting is prohibited in thecontinuous processing of the work processing.

According to this configuration, in the print processing, half cuttingis performed on the border of the plurality of respectively adjoininglabels, whereby the integrity (ease with which the labels can be stored)as the continuous label can be maintained. When in use, the user canpeel off the tape main body at the half-cut portion without using a pairof scissors, or the like, thereby easily obtaining each label (tape mainbody). On the other hand, in the work processing, half-cutting is notperformed on the border of the plurality of respectively adjoininglabels. Therefore, there is no possibility of forming a label in which adisplacement has occurred between the half-cut portion and thework-processed portion.

In the above-referenced cases, it is preferable that the processingsection further comprises an embossing device for embossing Braillecharacters on the processing tape.

According to this configuration, there is no possibility of forming aplurality of labels containing ink characters and Braille characters inparallel with each other, in which the printed portion and the embossedportion are displaced from each other.

In the above-referenced cases, it is preferable that the working sectionincludes a cutting device for half-cutting the tape main body of theprocessing tape into an arbitrary punched shape.

According to this configuration, there is no possibility of forming aplurality of labels in which the printed portion and the cut portiondeviate in position from each other.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The invention will be described with reference to the accompanyingdrawings, wherein like numbers reference like elements.

FIG. 1 is a perspective outside view of a label forming apparatus withits lid kept closed.

FIG. 2 is a perspective outside view of the label forming apparatus withthe lid left open.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a control system of the label formingapparatus.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart showing an overall processing of the labelforming apparatus.

FIGS. 5A to 5C are diagrams schematically showing an overall processingof the label forming apparatus.

FIG. 6 is a flow chart showing a continuous processing and an individualprocessing of the label forming apparatus.

FIG. 7 is a diagram schematically showing the continuous processing inthe print processing of the label forming apparatus.

FIG. 8 is a diagram schematically showing the continuous processing inthe emboss processing of the label forming apparatus.

FIG. 9 is a diagram schematically showing an individual processing inthe print-and-emboss processing of the label forming apparatus.

FIG. 10 is a diagram schematically showing the continuous processing inthe print-and-emboss processing of the label forming apparatus.

FIGS. 11A and 11B are diagrams schematically showing the continuousprocessing and the individual processing, respectively, of the labelforming apparatus according to another embodiment.

DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

With reference to the accompanying drawings, a description will now bemade about an apparatus for forming a label (also referred to as a labelforming apparatus) to which this invention is applied. This labelforming apparatus is a complex apparatus which performs printing of inkcharacters (i.e., characters printed with ink) on a processing tape(i.e., a tape to be subjected to various processing) to be paid out of atape cartridge mounted on the apparatus, and which also performsembossing of Braille characters on a tape piece (or a piece of tape) tobe manually inserted into the apparatus.

FIG. 1 is an outside perspective view of a label forming apparatus 1with its lid being closed. FIG. 2 is an outside perspective view of thelabel forming apparatus 1 with its lid left open. As shown in FIGS. 1and 2, the label forming apparatus 1 is made up of: an apparatus mainbody 2 which performs printing of ink characters and embossing ofBraille characters on a processing tape T; and a tape cartridge C whichcontains therein the processing tape T and an ink ribbon R and which isdetachably mounted on the apparatus main body 2.

The apparatus main body 2 has an outer shell made of an apparatus casing11 which is divided into an upper part and a lower part. On an uppersurface of a front half of the apparatus casing 11, there is disposed akeyboard 12 which constitutes an operating section 101. On a left sideof the rear half portion of the apparatus casing 11, there isconstituted a printing section 102 and, on a right side of the rear halfportion of the apparatus casing 11, there is constituted an embossingsection 104. Although not shown, there is mounted inside the apparatuscasing 11 a circuit board which constitutes a driving section 106, acontrol section 107, or the like (see FIG. 3) which are described indetail hereinafter. On the right side of the apparatus casing 11, thereis formed a power supply port 13 for supplying electric power to thelabel forming apparatus 1 and a connection port 14 (interface) forconnecting the label forming apparatus 1 to an external apparatus suchas a personal computer, or the like (not shown).

The printing section 102 has formed therein in a recessed manner acartridge mounting section 15 which forms the portion in which the tapecartridge C is mounted. The cartridge mounting section 15 is providedwith an open/close lid 16 which opens and closes the section 15. On afront surface of the open/close lid 16, there are formed: a rectangulardisplay 17 which displays the results of inputting, or the like throughthe keyboard 12; and a peep hole 18 which is used to visually confirmthe mounting or absence of the cartridge C in a state of keeping theopen/close lid 16 closed.

On the left side of the apparatus casing 11, there is formed aprint-tape ejecting slot 19 which communicates the cartridge mountingsection 15 and the outside. A cutter unit 30 for cutting the processingtape T paid out of the cartridge C lies close to this print-tapeejecting slot 19. By cutting a rear end (trailing edge) portion of theprocessing tape T by means of a full cutter 32 (to be described indetail hereinafter) of the cutter unit 30, a tape piece Ta havingprinted thereon ink characters (see FIGS. 5A to 5C) is discharged out ofthe print-tape ejecting slot 19.

In the cartridge mounting section 15 there are disposed a printing head20 (thermal head) which has a heating element and which is covered witha head cover; and a platen drive shaft (not shown) which feeds theprocessing tape T of the tape cartridge C and the ink ribbon R. On therear side of the cartridge mounting section 15, there are built in aprinting feed motor 21 (see FIG. 3) which drives a platen drive shaftand a take-up drive shaft, as well as a gear train, or the like.

The tape cartridge C is formed by housing inside a cartridge case 22,which is divided into an upper part and a lower part: a tape core 23around which is wound the processing tape T; a ribbon feeding roll 24around which is wound the ink ribbon R and a ribbon take-up reel 25; anda platen roller 26 which is constituted by a rubber roller. When thetape cartridge C is mounted on the cartridge mounting section 15, theprinting head 20 is inserted from the apparatus side into a through hole27 of the tape cartridge C. Also, the platen drive shaft and the take-updrive shaft are brought into engagement with the platen roller 26 andthe ribbon take-up reel 25, respectively. The printing head 20 thuscomes into contact with the platen roller 26 with the processing tape Tand the ink ribbon R being sandwiched therebetween, thereby enabling theprinting of ink characters.

Then, while feeding the processing tape T by driving the platen roller26, the printing of the ink characters (i.e., printing of characterstring of letters, marks, or the like) is performed based on thecharacter data (ink character data) prepared in the control section 107corresponding to the character information as inputted from the keyboard12, or the like. After printing of the ink characters has been finished,only the processing tape T is discharged to the outside from the tapedischarge slot 28 of the tape cartridge C. The ink ribbon R is taken upinside (by the ribbon tale-up reel 25).

The processing tape T is fed by a cut length which is set based on theink-character data (length of the print-processing region),Braille-character data (length of emboss-processing region), or thelike, to be prepared by the inputted character information, or is fed bya cut length which is set based on the label length to be designated bythe user. The processing tape T is then cut at the rear end thereof.Therefore, an appropriate length of the label La can be cut off from thepaid out processing tape T. It is, however, to be noted that the tapefeed amount may vary to some degree (e.g., ±2%) as compared with thedesign value due to slippage between the platen roller 26 and theprocessing tape T, or due to settling of the platen roller 26, or thelike.

The processing tape T is prepared in two kinds of tape widths (12 mm, 24mm). The tape width of 12 mm is made to correspond to the height of oneBraille cell (i.e., minimum width that allows for embossing). With theprocessing tape T of 12 mm width, the print-processing region(ink-character array) and the emboss-processing region (Braille array)are disposed in a back-and-forth (or in an overlapped) positionalrelationship on the processing tape T. With the processing tape of 24 mmwidth, on the other hand, the print-processing region and theemboss-processing region are disposed in two stages in anupper-half/lower-half positional relationship on the processing tape T.Although description will be made in detail hereinafter, the upper-halfarea of the processing tape T is the print-processing region and thelower-half area is the emboss-processing region. In addition, theprocessing tape T is a release paper which is made up of a tape mainbody T1 (recording tape or a tape on which recording is made) and arelease tape T2 which is adhered to the tape main body T1.

Although not shown, a plurality of small holes to be detected are formedon a rear surface of the cartridge case 22. These plurality of holes areidentified by a tape identifying sensor 29 (microswitch, see FIG. 3)which is provided at a corner of the cartridge mounting section 15,thereby detecting the kind of the processing tape T and also the factthat the processing tape T is mounted in position.

The cutter unit 30 is disposed between the cartridge mounting section 15and the print-tape ejecting slot 19. The cutter unit 30 is providedwith: a full cutter (cutting device) 32 which is driven by thefull-cutter motor 31 and cuts both the tape main body T1 and the releasetape T2 of the processing tape T in the style of a pair of scissors; anda half cutter 34 which cuts only the tape main body T1 in the style of apair of scissors equipped with a stopper (see FIG. 3). The term “halfcutter or half cutting” means that the cutting is made such that onlythe release tape remains uncut even if a cutting line may, or may not,be formed on the release tape to a certain depth.

It is thus so arranged that, by means of this half cutter 34, a half-cutline 35 can be formed at a predetermined position (e.g., 15 mm) from afront end (or a leading edge) of the processing tape T. Due to thishalf-cut line 36, the tape main body T1 is divided into a waste margin(or waste portion) 37 and the label portion 38 which becomes the objectto be attached to something else (see FIGS. 5A to 5C), or else, thelabels La which are adjoining to one another are partitioned in thecontinuous processing which is described in detail hereinafter. (seeFIG. 7).

The embossing section 104 is made up of: an embossing assembly 41 whichconstitutes the main body of the embossing section 104; an emboss-tapeinserting portion 42 into which is manually inserted a tape piece (or apiece of tape) Ta to be embossed, from a front end (or a leading edge)thereof with the printed surface looking upward, and which lies closerto the operator of the apparatus 1 relative to the embossing assembly41; and an embossed-tape ejecting portion 43 out of which the tape pieceTa having embossed thereon with Braille characters is ejected rearward(i.e., in a direction away from the operator) and which lies on theopposite side of the embossing assembly 41 as seen in the direction offlow of the tape Ta. The emboss-tape inserting portion 42 is providedwith a manual insertion guide 44 whose width can be adjusted. In thefigure, reference numeral 45 denotes an emboss-section cover to coverthe embossing assembly 41.

The embossing assembly 41 is to form embossing salient which constitutesa so-called six-point Braille on the piece of ejected tape Ta, and ismade up of: a tape feed unit 46 for feeding the tape piece Ta insertedfrom the emboss-tape inserting portion 42 toward the embossed-tapeejecting portion 43; an embossing unit 47 for performing embossing ofBraille characters on the tape piece Ta to be fed; and a base 48 framefor supporting the tape feed unit 46 and the embossing unit 47.

The tape feed unit 46 is constituted by a grip roller 52 which is madeup of a driving roller (rubber roller) to be driven by an embossing feedmotor 51 and a driven roller. In a similar manner as the feedingmechanism of the above-referenced printing section 102, the tape feedamount may vary to some degree (e.g., ±2%) as compared with the designvalue due to slippage between the grip roller 52 and the processing tapeT, or due to settling of the grip roller 52, or the like.

The embossing unit 47 is arranged to form embossing salient on the tapepiece Ta by selectively lifting three embossing pins 54 with threesolenoids 53 serving as the driving source. This selective lifting isperformed based on the character data (embossing data) formed tocorrespond to the character information inputted through the keyboard12, or the like (see FIG. 3). The three embossing pins 54 are disposedto form embossing salient on the left side (as seen in the direction offeeding, i.e., on the lower-half area) of the inserted tape piece Ta.

The keyboard 12 is used in inputting various designations and data intothe control section 107. The keyboard 12 has arranged therein alphabetkey group, mark key group, numeral key group, character key groupinclusive of Japanese hiragana and katakana key group, function keygroup for designating various functions, or the like.

The function key group includes: a “selection” key for entering data andshifting line at the time of text inputting and selection/designation ofvarious modes in selection screen; a “print” key for starting printingoperation; an “emboss” key for starting embossing operation; a“continuous-process” key for calling up continuous-processing menu whichis described in detail hereinafter; or the like.

With reference to FIG. 3, a description will now be made about theconstitution of the control system of the label forming apparatus 1. Thelabel forming apparatus 1 is made up of: an operating section 101 whichhas the keyboard 12 and the display 17 and which governs the userinterface such as inputting of characters by the user and displaying ofvarious pieces of information, or the like; the printing section 102which has the printing head 20 and the printing feed motor 21 so as toperform printing of ink data based on the inputted characterinformation, on the processing tape T while feeding the processing tapeT and the ink ribbon R and which also has the full cutter 32 and thehalf cutter 34 as well as the full-cutter motor 31 and the half-cuttermotor 33 for driving the same and which performs full cutting and halfcutting on the processing tape T; the embossing section 104 which hasthe embossing feed motor 51, the solenoids 53, and the embossing pins 54and which performs embossing of Braille data on the tape piece Ta whiletransporting the same based on the character information; a detectingsection 105 which has various sensors such as the tape identifyingsensor 29, or the like; the driving section 106 which has a displaydriver 111, a head driver 112, a printing feed motor driver 113, acutter motor driver 114, an embossing driver 115, and an embossing feedmotor driver 116 and which performs driving of each section; and thecontrol section 107 which is connected to each section to perform thecontrolling of the entire label forming apparatus 1.

The control section 107 has a CPU 121, a ROM 122, a RAM 123 and an inputoutput controller (10C) 124 and is connected to one another through aninternal bus 125. The CPU 121 inputs various signals and data from eachsection of the label forming apparatus 1 based on a control programinside the ROM 122 through the IOC 124. In addition, by processingvarious data inside the RAM 123 based on the inputted various signalsand data and by outputting the various signals and data to each sectioninside the label forming apparatus 1 through the IOC 124, the control,or the like of the ink-character processing and the Braille-characterprocessing are controlled.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5A to 5C, a selection is made in the labelforming apparatus 1 from among the following modes by the selectioncommand from the keyboard 12, or the like. The modes in question are: aprint-and-emboss processing mode in which ink-character printing andBraille embossing are performed; a print-processing mode in which onlyprinting of ink characters is performed; and an emboss-processing modein which only the Braille embossing is performed (strictly speaking,printing of an insert-direction mark 37 a to be described in detailhereinafter is also performed). Based on the selection of the mode, theprint-and-emboss processing, the print processing, and the embossprocessing is selectively performed.

As shown in FIG. 4, when the processing is started with the depressionof a power switch (power ON), an initial setting such as restoring eachof the saved flags is performed to thereby restore the state to the lastpower OFF (S11), and the kind of the tape (tape width) is detected bythe tape identifying sensor 29 (S12). In this example, a processing tapeT (tape cartridge C) of 24 mm width is mounted, and the kind of the tapeis detected.

Subsequently, selection is made by the user of the processing mode(print-and-emboss processing mode, print-processing mode,emboss-processing mode) (S13), and inputting of the correspondingcharacter information is made depending on the selected mode, therebyperforming the label forming processing corresponding to each of theselected modes.

In other words, when the print-and-emboss processing mode is selected(S13: (a)), input is made of the character information (e.g., “A,” “I,”“U”) for printing of ink characters and character information (e.g., “A,I, U”) for Braille embossing by data inputting by the user through thekeyboard 12, or the like (S14). The above-referenced characterinformation may, of course, be different from each other. It is to benoted that, in FIGS. 5A to 5C and others, characters “A, I, U” aretransliteration of Japanese hiragana and that the embossed Braillecharacters in those figures correspond to Japanese hiragana, and not toalphabets.

When the “print” key is depressed, the processing by the printingsection 102 is performed. In other words, the processing tape T to bepaid out of the tape cartridge C is subjected to printing of inkcharacters “A, I, U” on the rear side (label portion 38) and issubjected, on the front side (waste margin 37), to printing of theinsert-direction mark 37 a which indicates the direction of insertion ofthe processing tape T (S15). It is to be noted that the terms “rear” and“front” are used in relation to the direction of feeding (or traveling)of the processing tape T. Further, by means of the half cutter 34, ahalf-cut line 36 to separate the tape main body T1 into the waste margin37 and the label portion 38 is formed and, by means of the full cutter32, the processing tape T is ct off (S16), thereby ejecting the printedtape piece Ta out of the print-tape ejecting slot 19.

Subsequently, according to the insert-direction mark 37 a, the tapepiece Ta is manually inserted into the emboss-tape inserting portion 42.When the “emboss” key is depressed, the emboss processing by theembossing section 104 is performed. In other words, that tape piece Taof the processing tape T which has been formed by passing through theprinting section 102 is subjected to embossing of Braille characters “A,I, U” (S17). In this manner, a series of print-and-emboss processing isfinished (see FIG. 5A). At this time, since the tape piece Ta is notinserted in the wrong direction (front and rear direction) thanks to theinsert-direction mark 37 a, it is possible to prevent theBraille-character array from being formed in the opposite direction(front and rear) relative to the ink-character array. It is alsopossible to prevent the Braille-character array from being wronglyformed on an upper-half area of the processing tape T of 24 mm width.

As described hereinabove, it is so arranged in this example that aprinting region is provided on an upper half area and the embossingregion is provided on a lower half area, respectively, of the processingtape T of 24 mm width (see FIG. 5A). It is also possible to employ alayout in which the printing region is provided on the lower half areaand the embossing region is provided on the upper half area. Stillfurthermore, it is preferable that the layout is arranged to beselectable.

Then, when the print-processing mode is selected (S13: (b)), only thecharacter information for ink-character printing (e.g., “A, I, U”) isinputted (S24). Then, the processing tape T paid out of the tapecartridge C is subjected to print processing by the printing section 102of the ink characters “A, I, U” on the label portion 38 (S25), and isalso subjected to cutting (S26), thereby finishing the processing (seeFIG. 5B). In this case, unlike the print-and-emboss processing mode, theprinting of the insert-direction mark 37 a is not made.

Finally, when the emboss-processing mode is selected (S13: (c)), onlythe character information (e.g., “A, I, U”) for Braille embossing isinputted (S34). Then, the processing tape T paid out of the tapecartridge C is subjected to printing of the inset-direction mark 37 a atthe front end thereof (waste margin 37), and is subjected to tapefeeding by the printing section 102 by the cutting length set based onthe inputted character information (embossing data). Further, a half-cutline 36 for dividing the processing tape T into the waste margin 37 andthe label portion 38 is formed by means of the half cutter 34. Theprocessing tape T is also cut off by the full cutter 32 (S36) to therebyeject out of the print-tape ejection slot 19 a tape piece Ta on whichnothing has been printed. In this example, the printing section 102 mayalso be arranged that the insert-direction mark 37 a is not printed.

Thereafter, the tape piece Ta inserted into the emboss-tape insertingportion 42 is subjected to embossing of Braille characters (“A, I, U”)by means of the embossing section 104 (S37) (see FIG. 5C). Instead ofthe tape piece Ta to be obtained by the tape-feed operation and the tapecutting operation in the printing section 102, an elongated rectangularprocessing tape T cut in advance into an appropriate length mayalternatively be manually inserted into the emboss-tape insertingportion 42.

Now, with reference to FIGS. 6 to 10, a description will be made about acontinuous processing and individual processing in the label formingapparatus 1. The label forming apparatus 1 has a continuous processingmenu. In the above-referenced print processing and the embossprocessing, a continuous processing is allowed in which a singlecontinuous label L containing therein a plurality of labels La isformed. In the print-and-emboss processing, this continuous processingis prohibited and, based on this prohibition, an individual processingis performed in which a plurality of labels La are formed in successionas individual (separate) labels.

A concrete description will now be made. A description will be madeabout an example in which five labels La having printed thereon “A, I,U” are formed by selecting the print-processing mode. First, characterinformation “A, I, U” for ink-character printing is inputted through thekeyboard 12, or the like, and a “continuous-process” key is depressed tothereby call up the continuous processing menu (S51 in FIG. 6) and thenumber “5” of sheets (or pieces) to be formed is inputted. Then, whenthe “print” key is depressed (S52), a continuous processing of forming acontinuous label L having five labels La in series is performed (S54).

In other words, the printing section 102 performs five times of printing“A, I, U” on the processing tape T paid out of the cartridge C. Further,by means of the half cutter 34, a half-cut line 36 is formed on theborder between the respective adjoining labels La and, by means of thefull cutter 32, the rear end of the continuous label L is cut off. Inthis manner, there can be obtained a continuous label L (tape piece Ta)in which five labels La having respectively printed thereon inkcharacters “A, I, U” are held in a continuous manner (see FIG. 7).

According to this configuration, five labels La can be formed bydepressing the “print” key only once instead of depressing it many times(five times in this particular example). In addition, since the fivelabels La are held together in series, they can be prevented fromgetting scattered while storing, thereby allowing easy storing. Stillfurthermore, the border among the respective adjoining labels La of thecontinuous label L has been half-cut. Therefore, at the time of adheringeach of the labels La of the continuous label L to an object of adhering(i.e., an object to which each of the labels is to be adhered), each ofthe labels La (tape main body T1) can be easily peeled off by takingadvantage of the half-cut portion without using a pair of scissors, orthe like.

Next, a description will be made about an example in which theemboss-processing mode is selected to thereby form five labels La eachhaving embossed thereon Braille characters “A, I, U.” First, “A, I, U”are inputted through the keyboard 12, or the like as the characterinformation for Braille embossing, and also the “continuous-process” keyis depressed to call up a continuous processing menu (S51). The numberof “5” representing the pages to be formed is inputted. When the “print”key is depressed (S52), the above-referenced continuous processing isperformed (S54) since the emboss-processing mode has been selected (S53:No).

In other words, the printing section 102 prints the insert-directionmark 38 on the waste margin 37 of the processing tape T paid out of thetape cartridge C, feeds the processing tape T by the set cut-length, andcuts the processing tape T at the rear end of the continuous label Lmade up of five labels La in series. Each of the labels La is thussubjected to embossing thereon of Braille characters “A, I, U” in thesubsequent emboss processing (see FIG. 8, upper-side image). Here,unlike the above-referenced print-processing mode, an arrangement ismade such that a half-cut line 36 is not formed on the border betweenthe respective adjoining five labels La. Therefore, there is nopossibility of forming labels La in which the half-cut line 36 and theembossed portion are displaced from each other.

Subsequently, the continuous label L (tape piece Ta) thus obtained ismanually inserted into the emboss-tape inserting portion 42 and the“emboss” key is depressed. The embossing section 104 performs theembossing operation of Braille characters “A, I, U” five times. Therecan thus be obtained a continuous label L in which five labels La areheld in series, each label La being embossed with Braille characters “A,I, U” (see FIG. 8, lower-side image). In the emboss-processing mode, asdescribed above, the half-cut line 36 is not formed on the borderbetween respective adjoining labels La. Therefore, the user must cut offeach label La by means of a pair of scissors, or the like. It maytherefore be so arranged that, also in the emboss-processing mode, thecontinuous processing is prohibited to thereby perform individualprocessing like in the print-and-emboss processing mode which isdescribed hereinafter.

Finally, a description will now be made about an example in which theprint-and-emboss processing mode is selected to thereby form five labelsLa each having printed thereon ink characters “A, I, U” and havingembossed thereon Braille characters “A, I, U.” First, inputting is madethrough the keyboard 12, or the like, of “A, I, U” as the characterinformation for printing the ink characters, and also of “A, I, U” asthe character information for embossing Braille characters. The“continuous-process” key is depressed to call up the continuousprocessing menu (S51) and input the number of “5” representing thenumber of sheets (or pieces) to be formed. Then, when the “print” key isdepressed (S52), the above-referenced continuous processing isprohibited (S55) unlike the example in the above-referencedprint-processing mode and the emboss-processing mode, since theprint-and-emboss processing mode has been selected here. Based on thisprohibition, the individual processing for individually forming fivelabels La is performed (S56).

In other words, should the continuous processing be allowed in theprint-and-emboss processing mode, there will occur the followingproblem. Namely, due to the error between the amount of tape feeding bythe feeding mechanism in the printing section 102 and the amount of tapefeeding by the feeding mechanism in the embossing section 104, therewill occur a displacement in the tape-feeding direction between theprinted portion and the embossed portion in each label La. Thisdisplacement becomes remarkable toward the rear end of the continuouslabel L. In the end, as a result of displacement of the embossed portionrelative to the half-cut line 36 between the respective adjoining labelsLa, the embossed portion at the end of the continuous label L willmisalign with the preceding (i.e., front-side) adjoining label La.Namely, Braille characters partly merge into the preceding adjoininglabel La (see FIG. 10).

As a solution, the continuous processing is prohibited and an individualprocessing is performed instead. In concrete, each time the inkcharacters “A, I, U” are printed, the printing section 102 performs fullcutting by the full cutter 32 at the rear end of each label La, and thisprocedure is repeated five times. Subsequently, each of the labels La(label piece Ta) thus obtained is manually inserted into the emboss-tapeinserting portion 42, and the “emboss” key is depressed. Then, theembossing section 104 embosses the Braille characters “A, I, U.” Byrepeating this embossing operation, there can be individually formedfive labels La each having embossed thereon the Braille characters “A,I, U” (see FIG. 9).

According to this configuration, there is no possibility that aplurality of labels La are formed in which the printed portion and theembossed portion of each of the labels La are displaced from each otherin the tape-feeding direction. In addition, by performing individualprocessing, in place of the continuous processing, the printed portionand the embossed portion of each of the labels La will not be displacedfrom each other. As a result, there can be formed a plurality of labelsLa in which the ink characters and the Braille characters are indicatedwithout being displaced from each other.

As described hereinabove, according to the label forming apparatus 1 ofthis embodiment, there is no possibility that a plurality of labels Laare formed in which the printed portion and the embossed portion aredisplaced from each other in the tape-feeding direction.

As a label forming apparatus to which this invention is applied, adescription has so far been made about a complex apparatus in which boththe print processing and the emboss processing can be performed on theprocessing tape. This invention can also be applied to a complexapparatus in which the print processing and other physical processingcan be performed in place of the emboss processing. The term “physicalprocessing” is also referred to as “physical work processing” or “workprocessing” to mean “processing to cause to produce some kind ofchange.”

For example, this invention can also be applied to a label formingapparatus in which character array, or the like is printed on aprocessing tape made up of a tape main body and a release tape, and thenonly the tape main body is half-cut into an arbitrary stamped shape,thereby forming a label.

Although not shown, this label forming apparatus is made up of: aprinting section which performs printing, based on inputted information,on a processing tape to be paid out of the mounted tape cartridge andalso performs cutting (full cutting) to separate the processed portion;and a cutting section which performs half cutting of only the tape mainbody, based on the inputted information, by cooperation of a feedingmechanism which moves the separated tape piece (printed portion) backand forth and a cutting bite which is caused to reciprocate in adirection at right angles to the moving direction of the separated tapepiece.

In a manner similar to that of the above-referenced embodiment, aselection is made in the label forming apparatus from among: aprint-and-stamp processing mode in which both printing and stamping areperformed on the processing tape; a print-processing mode in which onlyprinting is performed; and a stamp-processing mode in which onlystamping is performed. Depending on the selection of the mode, theprint-and-stamp processing, print processing, and stamp processing areselectively performed. In addition, in the print processing and thestamp processing, a continuous processing is prohibited and, based onthis prohibition, an individual processing is performed in which aplurality of labels are formed individually.

Should the continuous processing be allowed in the stamp-processingmode, there will occur the following problem. Namely, due to an errorbetween the amount of tape feeding by the feeding mechanism in theprinting section and the amount of tape feeding by the feeding mechanismin the stamping section, there will occur a displacement in thetape-feeding direction between the printed portion and the stampedportion (stamping line 39) in each label La. This displacement becomesremarkable toward the rear end of the continuous label L. As a result ofdisplacement of the stamping line 39 relative to the half-cut line 36between the respective adjoining labels La, the stamping line 39 willmisalign with each other. In the end, the preceding (or front-side)adjoining label La will merge into the preceding (front-side) adjoininglabel La (see FIG. 11A).

As a solution, this kind of continuous processing is prohibited and anindividual processing is performed instead. In concrete, the characterarray “A, B, C” is printed three times and full cutting is performed atthe rear end of each of the labels La. Subsequently, the stampingsection forms an elliptical stamping line 39 so as to enclose thecharacter array “A, B, C.” By repeating the above-referenced fullcutting, there can be obtained three labels La each having formedthereon the character array “A, B, C” and the stamping line 39,respectively (see FIG. 11B).

As described hereinabove, according to this label forming apparatus,there is no possibility of forming a plurality of labels La in which theprinted portion and the portion processed ready for stamping aredisplaced from each other in the tape-feeding direction.

It is further understood by those skilled in the art that the foregoingis the preferred embodiment of the invention, and that various changesand modifications may be made without departing from the spirit andscope thereof.

1. A method of forming a label with a label forming apparatus, theapparatus comprising: a printing section for performing printing whilefeeding a processing tape; a working section for performing physicalworking on the processing tape while feeding the processing tape, theapparatus being capable of selectively performing print processing forperforming printing, work processing for performing physical working,and print-and-work processing for performing printing and working on theprocessing tape based on inputted information, the apparatus also beingcapable of continuous processing for forming a single continuous labelin which a plurality of labels are formed in series, the methodcomprising: allowing the continuous processing in the print processingand the work processing; and prohibiting the continuous processing inthe print-and-work processing.
 2. The method according to claim 1,further comprising individual processing of forming a plurality oflabels in succession as individual labels in the print-and-workprocessing based on prohibition of the continuous processing.
 3. A labelforming apparatus comprising: a printing section for performing printingwhile feeding a processing tape; a working section for performingphysical working on the processing tape while feeding the processingtape, the apparatus being capable of selectively performing printprocessing for performing printing, work processing for performingphysical working, and print-and-work processing for performing printingand physical working on the processing tape based on inputtedinformation, and also being capable of continuous processing for forminga single continuous label in which a plurality of labels are formed inseries, the apparatus including: a processing selection device forselecting from among the print processing, the work processing, andprint-and-work processing; a control device for controlling the printingsection and the working section, wherein the control device allows thecontinuous processing when the print processing and the work processingare selected, and prohibits the continuous processing when theprint-and-work processing is selected.
 4. The apparatus according toclaim 3, wherein, when the print-and-work processing is selected, thecontrol device performs individual processing of forming a plurality oflabels in succession as individual labels based on prohibition of thecontinuous processing.
 5. The apparatus according to claim 4, whereinthe processing tape is a tape wound into a roll; wherein the printingsection further includes a cutting device for cutting the processingtape, wherein, in the work processing and the print-and-work processing,physical working is performed by the working section on a piece of theprocessing tape formed by passing through the printing section, andwherein the control device controls the cutting device to performcutting of the processing tape at a rear end of the continuous label inthe continuous processing and to perform cutting of the processing tapeat a rear end of each of the labels in the individual processing.
 6. Theapparatus according to claim 5, wherein the processing tape is made upof a tape main body and a release tape, wherein the printing sectionfurther includes a half cutter for cutting only the tape main body, andwherein the control device controls the half cutter to perform halfcutting in which a border of the plurality of respectively adjoininglabels is half-cut in the continuous processing and the half cutting isprohibited in the continuous processing of the work processing.
 7. Theapparatus according to claim 3, wherein the processing section furthercomprises an embossing device for embossing Braille characters on theprocessing tape.
 8. The apparatus according to claim 3, wherein theprocessing tape includes a tape main body and a release tape, andwherein the working section includes a cutting device for half-cuttingthe tape main body of the processing tape into an arbitrary punchedshape.